And She Replies 'Never'
by renivatio
Summary: one-shot ichiruki. There's a boy running through the rain, searching for a girl with violet eyes...


just a random little piece i came up with in the middle of the night. literally. it's pretty strange. doesn't make much sense if you ask me. i'm sorry if Ichigo seems OC. he's in pour-out-heart-mode which he doesn't normally do so i can't seem to get it quite right. anyway, enjoy!

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And She Replies 'Never'. **

It is raining. The stage upon which we set our scene is shrouded by the thick blanket of night and the heavy droplets of water pitter patter downwards with fervent intensity.

There is a boy, running through the rain. His baggy dark blue pajamas bottoms cling to his legs and the dampened weight of them drag him down but he ignores the interference. His chest is bare; the moonlight outlines the thin scars etched finely across his skin. His muscles ripple in the darkness as he pumps himself forward, pushing onwards. Electric orange hair is batted down by the wind as he runs. A strand of it creeps cheekily into his eye. He impatiently wipes it away. His breathing is short and coarse, as if he had been running for a long time. To tell the truth, he has no idea long he's been running for, maybe minutes, maybe hours. To him, it feels like years. His throat is dry and his legs tired but he knows he can't give up. If he stops, the darkness that follows him like a shadow every step of the way will engulf him, forever trapping him in world of twilight.

He is searching for someone. As he runs, he yells out her name but the only reply he gets is the call of an owl or the shriek of a mouse. But still he continues to call her, shouting her name at the top of his voice, until his throat is hoarse and he feels he can go on for no longer. But to him, her name is a lilting melody and how can one get tired of music?

He knows she is no longer in his world, this bewitching girl that he is searching for. But he can feel her, right beside him, but just out of his reach. She has left, for her world. The one she has lived her life in. The world she belongs to. But what is it that separates her world from his? Nothing but a thin veil of reality. The boy claws at the air in front of him, trying desperately to find a stitch in this curtain…but to no avail. So he keeps on running, thinking, with the logic of a desperate man, that he might be able to achieve something from doing so.

The surroundings have changed from shops and vehicles to trees and shrubs. The boy finds himself running in a park, crunching leaves underfoot. Finally, exhausted, he crumbles down.

Looking up at the gravestone in front of him, he almost smiles. Unconsciously, he had run to _her;_ the one person who could make him feel better no matter what.

'Mamma…'

The rain continues to spatter down; cruel, relentless, its crystallized beauty mocking his pain.

'Mamma…'

It had been a while, since he'd done this. Normally he left the talking-to-gravestone thing to his sisters, the boy had always considered it a form of weakness. And he certainly never cried.

But the tears were falling now, saltiness mingling with the droplets of rain on his face. The boy didn't know how or why but suddenly he was weeping, weeping for the two women who had meant the world to him and were now no longer in his world.

He chokes down a sob and starts again.

'I'm sorry Mamma. I haven't exactly been the world's best son or brother. I've failed more times than I'd like to remember but…these last few months, everything changed. I changed. I'm a different person now and I think a better one. And…it was all because of this one girl'

The rain subsides a little.

'She…she's a bout this tall…and she has violet eyes. They're really…sad eyes. Sometimes I just look at them, thinking up ways of making them happy. Because when she laughs, her face lights up and…everything around her comes to life. It's amazing Mamma, she's amazing.'

The boy stops and smiles to himself, remembering.

'But, she's so damn annoying! I mean seriously, she's the most irritating little person I've ever met. She knows exactly what to say to tick me off…but…she also knows exactly what to say to make me feel better when I'm down. There's something about her that's so soothing. My worries and fears just disappear and…it's all from just sitting in the same room as her. I can't explain it but…she feels so…_right'_.

'She showed me a whole new world Mamma. A world you never knew about. She showed me blood and battles and pain but…she also showed me strength and bravery. And now this bravery and this strength, belongs to me and I'm using it to protect others. Like I always wanted to when I was little. Now I can protect Yuzu and Karin, and Dad and…'

'…and her…'

'But…she left. Again. the last time she left, I went to bring her back but…I can't do that this time. This time I have no reason to go barging in there, making demands for her. And I know…that's where she belongs. But…there's another place where she belongs. In my heart. And now that she's gone, there's nothing but hollowness. The rain just doesn't seem to stop.'

The boy was so engrossed that he didn't hear the sound of soft footsteps behind him. A sharp voice breaks his reverie.

'Ichigo!'

The boy slowly turns around, disbelief in his amber eyes. Standing in front of him, drenched in the rain, is the girl.

'…Rukia?...'

'Of course it's me you moron. Just what the hell do you think you're doing, running about in the rain in the middle of the night? If you catch pneumonia and die, I'll kill you!'

'I…I came to give you dinner and…the closet was empty…I couldn't feel your reiatsu in this world…I thought you'd left..' Ichigo manages to stammer out, still struggling with the reality in front of him.

Rukia yawns. 'Yeah, Renji had this annoying emergency situation and asked me to fill in. Sorry, there was no time to leave a note'

By this time Ichigo is fuming. He is furious with himself for jumping to conclusions.

Rukia, noticing his unusually heavy breathing asks, 'What's the big deal? Not like you'd care very much if I ever did decide to return to Soul Society.'

Ichigo starts. 'Of course I'd care!' he cries out vehemently before blushing at the realization of the implications of what he'd just said. 'I mean…no, I mean…'. He trails off.

Rukia smiles. It's a rare thing, to see Rukia with a genuine smile of her face and for a moment Ichigo forgets where he is, forgets everything and loses himself in that smile.

Suddenly he finds himself standing close to her. Too close. He can feel the warmth of her breath on his chilled chest and see the droplets of rain hanging from her lashes. Her smile has turned teasing and it plays across her cherry lips, tempting him.

'You fool Ichigo. If you don't want me to leave, you know all you have to do is say so.'

Ichigo brings his amber eyes to meet her violet ones and in a moment flashes a world of understanding.

Softly, he wraps his arms around her small, wet body. He brings his face to her and whispers in her ear, 'Rukia, please don't leave'.

And she replies, 'Never'.

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oh, doesn't that review button look oh-so-tempting!!;) 


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